How to get sub 30 minutes for 5k

dee75

Hi all

I'm new to the running game, having started parkrun in June. I've done 18 runs so far with some volunteering.

My PB is 31.08 from mid November. Most weeks I do it in 32 to 33 minutes. My very first one which was a combination of jogging with a few short walks took me 35 minutes.

I try to do a second run mid week. It's usually 4k on the treadmill most weeks.

I'd really appreciate some advice on how to get a bit faster. I just feel there hasn't been a lot of improvement.

I'm a 42 year old female with a full time job and 3 young kids so not a lot of me time!

Thanks!

Dee75

Kellygirl

dee75 wrote: »

Hi all

I'm new to the running game, having started parkrun in June. I've done 18 runs so far with some volunteering.

My PB is 31.08 from mid November. Most weeks I do it in 32 to 33 minutes. My very first one which was a combination of jogging with a few short walks took me 35 minutes.

I try to do a second run mid week. It's usually 4k on the treadmill most weeks.

I'd really appreciate some advice on how to get a bit faster. I just feel there hasn't been a lot of improvement.

I'm a 42 year old female with a full time job and 3 young kids so not a lot of me time!

Thanks!

Dee75

You probably need to be running 3-4 times a week including the Parkrun really to start getting faster. There are lots of running plans you could follow but for me personally I got naturally faster by just doing the miles. I started off similar to you doing Park run in approx 35 mins running and walking and mid week then I was building up to running about 8km. What you could do as well when you are training is start running short distances a little faster, say 500 meters and then recover for 1km with a slow jog and repeat and eventually work up to longer faster distances and shorter recoveries.

I run late at night when kids are in bed but don’t know if that’s an option for you to get the extra runs in.

Baby75

Hi Dee75

it's best to build a good base running frequently every week as Kellygirl already said ideally 3 to 4 times a week, run these run easy and try to build up your distance to 5km at least 2 times with one run a week longer 6km
Try adding some strides at the end of your easy run, these really help and get you ready for that last kick at the end of a race as you sprint to the finish

you could also try some speed work

once a week I used to do a fartlek session, so I would warm up for about 10 minutes then using lampost/ sign/tree whatever works increase my speed hold it till I reached lampost then slow down and recover I used to do about 4 to 5 then cool down

but just running more often will help, keep at it and good luck

skyblue46

To do better over any of the shorter distances it's recommended that you can comfortably run twice the distance at an easy pace. Build up gradually to 10k at a conversational pace. You should be able to talk without pausing between words. I'd not be in any hurry. The generally accepted rule is not to increase duration or pace by more than 10% a week.

RacoonQueen

dee75 wrote: »

Hi all

I'm new to the running game, having started parkrun in June. I've done 18 runs so far with some volunteering.

My PB is 31.08 from mid November. Most weeks I do it in 32 to 33 minutes. My very first one which was a combination of jogging with a few short walks took me 35 minutes.

I try to do a second run mid week. It's usually 4k on the treadmill most weeks.

I'd really appreciate some advice on how to get a bit faster. I just feel there hasn't been a lot of improvement.

I'm a 42 year old female with a full time job and 3 young kids so not a lot of me time!

Thanks!

Dee75

You need to run more is the simple answer.

A run longer than 5k, the parkrun and a run with some faster sections in it would be a nice start. Could you run at lunchtime in work or anything? Or before/after kids are in bed. When you break down your day it can be surprising how much time you could have to run/train. You could even split a run into two short runs in one day if you only have short windows.
In honesty, if you have been doing parkruns since June, you shouldn't have much trouble getting under 30 mins with a few weeks of dedicated training.

dee75

Thank you all for the advice and positive encouragement.

I've written out a simple four week training plan and I'll work hard to stick to it.

My husband says he will pace me at our parkrun in two weeks time to see how I'm going and that will be interesting!

Hopefully I will have a positive update for you all.

Thanks again!

Dee75

Kellygirl

dee75 wrote: »

Thank you all for the advice and positive encouragement.

I've written out a simple four week training plan and I'll work hard to stick to it.

My husband says he will pace me at our parkrun in two weeks time to see how I'm going and that will be interesting!

Hopefully I will have a positive update for you all.

Thanks again!

Dee75

Best of luck Dee and great your husband is supporting you. That’s a big help. Definitely keep us updated. You should start a training log!

ariana`

It's great to see another female posting here. I'm in the same boat with 3 young ones and a FT job, everyone is juggling real life with hobby running. If you'd like to post your 4 week plan here you might get further advice on it? One of the biggest novices mistakes is to 'race' every training run so that's one to beware of, most (or even all at this stage) of your running should be at an easy pace, a pace you can talk at. Enjoy your runs & g'luck

gypsylee

Hi dee. I was a long time chasing that sub 30 5k. I got close to it last January with a 30.02! Finally got it in April with a 28.05 which was a fluke. My time for 5k races now is around 29.xx which I am happy with. The more you run the more your times will improve. I find a weekly long slow run helps improve my fitness and therefore my race times.

Good luck with your plan, great to have support at home.

walshb

dee75 wrote: »

Hi all

I'm new to the running game, having started parkrun in June. I've done 18 runs so far with some volunteering.

My PB is 31.08 from mid November. Most weeks I do it in 32 to 33 minutes. My very first one which was a combination of jogging with a few short walks took me 35 minutes.

I try to do a second run mid week. It's usually 4k on the treadmill most weeks.

I'd really appreciate some advice on how to get a bit faster. I just feel there hasn't been a lot of improvement.

I'm a 42 year old female with a full time job and 3 young kids so not a lot of me time!

Thanks!

Dee75

Very achievable at your age. If you are finding getting training/running in a little difficult then look at your physical side. If carrying excess weight then shedding this should most definitely see you cover the distance in a shorter time.

So, assuming in fairly decent physical shape, non smoker (not much alcohol) and the right weight, with just normal training should easily see you break 30 mins.

I don't see any description or mention of your health or weight or general lifestyle. Surprised nobody asked. It makes giving advice easier when you know certain things. Best to see the full picture. Otherwise advice given can be misleading.

ariana`

gypsylee wrote: »

Hi dee. I was a long time chasing that sub 30 5k. I got close to it last January with a 30.02! Finally got it in April with a 28.05 which was a fluke. My time for 5k races now is around 29.xx which I am happy with. The more you run the more your times will improve. I find a weekly long slow run helps improve my fitness and therefore my race times.

Good luck with your plan, great to have support at home.

gypsylee you sell yourself short... everyone can have a bad day but you can't fluke a good time, take credit, be proud

gypsylee

ariana` wrote: »

gypsylee you sell yourself short... everyone can have a bad day but you can't fluke a good time, take credit, be proud

Thanks Ariana. Haven't come close to it since which makes me think it was a fluke! It was a great time for me and so I will be proud of it.

Sorry for hijacking your thread Dee

walshb

You cannot fluke performances in running. It's not darts or snooker.

dee75

walshb wrote: »

Very achievable at your age. If you are finding getting training/running in a little difficult then look at your physical side. If carrying excess weight then shedding this should most definitely see you cover the distance in a shorter time.

So, assuming in fairly decent physical shape, non smoker (not much alcohol) and the right weight, with just normal training should easily see you break 30 mins.

I don't see any description or mention of your health or weight or general lifestyle. Surprised nobody asked. It makes giving advice easier when you know certain things. Best to see the full picture. Otherwise advice given can be misleading.

Sure, that makes sense alright.

I'm in good health, non-smoker, non-drinker and no excess weight (weigh 9 stone 3lbs and 5 feet 6 inches tall). So I'm lucky to have a lot going for me there already I just need to get a bit more structured in the way I go about it now. I think now that laziness is my issue - when you're slim without exercising it can reduce motivation!

Thanks!

walshb

dee75 wrote: »

Sure, that makes sense alright.

I'm in good health, non-smoker, non-drinker and no excess weight (weigh 9 stone 3lbs and 5 feet 6 inches tall). So I'm lucky to have a lot going for me there already I just need to get a bit more structured in the way I go about it now. I think now that laziness is my issue - when you're slim without exercising it can reduce motivation!

Thanks!

Well, then it really is more down to getting miles into the legs. Do a good bit of speed work to get used to running "fast." Shorter distances like single ks at a decent pace....it then won't feel alien to you should you should you need to inject a bit of pace to maybe hit a target. Then simply keep training and clocking up miles....

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

Best of luck Dee and great your husband is supporting you. That’s a big help. Definitely, keep us updated. You should start a training log!

I second this Dee, keep us updated on how you are doing

dee75

Okay, here is the 4 week plan I'm going to follow (It's a mixture of one found online and what works with my average week): -

Week 1
Tuesday - Circuits
Wednesday - Easy 30 mins jog
Thursday - 3 x 1km at 6 min/km pace (90 second recovery)
Saturday - parkrun

Week 2
Monday - 4 x 800m at 4.48 pace (200m jog recovery)
Tuesday - Circuits
Thursday - 3 x 1km at 6 min/km pace (90 second recovery)
Saturday - parkrun

Week 3
Monday - 10 x 400m at 2.22 pace ( 60 second recovery)
Tuesday - Circuits
Thursday - 30 mins easy jog
Saturday - parkrun

Week 4
Monday - 4 x 800m at 4.48 pace (200m jog recovery)
Tuesday - Circuits
Thursday - 30 mins easy jog
Saturday - parkrun in 40 mins or under!!!

The circuit training is a 40 mins class at lunchtime near work.

All comments and advice welcome. I started today with my circuits class!

Kellygirl

Hi Dee,

Hope the circuit class went well. If you just started it you may be a little sore tomorrow.

Plan looks good and great you are fitting in the extra run. I would query the paces in the speed sessions. They look very fast and not quite sure they are needed at this stage. But others might have better advice there as to date I’ve tended to go just go and run. When I did sessions last year they were only a bit faster really - not all out sprints.

squadro

Well done. I'm walking/jogging for a year and only did my first timed 5k on Stephens day for a world shattering 38mins 42seconds. I only discovered fartlek recently (google it) but it seems to be helping to improve my lap times greatly.

skyblue46

I'm far from an expert but I would seriously question both the paces and recovery times for the intervals at this early stage. Hopefully some of the more experienced guys and gals come in on this.

dee75

skyblue46 wrote: »

I'm far from an expert but I would seriously question both the paces and recovery times for the intervals at this early stage. Hopefully some of the more experienced guys and gals come in on this.

My understanding of the paces is that they equate to 6 minutes per km which is what I need to be able to do to get sub 30 minutes over 5km?

skyblue46

dee75 wrote: »

My understanding of the paces is that they equate to 6 minutes per km which is what I need to be able to do to get sub 30 minutes over 5km?

I'm sure help will arrive here but all the advice I have received here is to train to current fitness levels, not target paces. That being said I have been helped on marathon and HM training not 5k. I could be totally wrong. I think that I'd also start with at least as much recovery time between reps if not more. 60 secs between 400s seems very short.

EC1000

I think it is the 4m48s pace that people are querying - which is 25% quicker than the 6 min pace that you are doing your other speedwork at?

Try to make your interval/speed runs over 5k in total if possible (i.e. add in 2k warm up and 2k cool down) as you will benefit greatly from training for longer than 5k.

Fair play for going about this the right way and thinking about what you are doing. Best of luck!

skyblue46

EC1000 wrote: »

I think it is the 4m48s pace that people are querying - which is 25% quicker than the 6 min pace that you are doing your other speedwork at?

Try to make your interval/speed runs over 5k in total if possible (i.e. add in 2k warm up and 2k cool down) as you will benefit greatly from training for longer than 5k.

Fair play for going about this the right way and thinking about what you are doing. Best of luck!

Looking at it again I think they are splits rather than pace so that the work is all at 6 min pace whether its 200s, 400s or 800. Getting a good plan, as you say, is the right way to go.

El Caballo

skyblue46 wrote: »

Looking at it again I think they are splits rather than pace so that the work is all at 6 min pace whether its 200s, 400s or 800. Getting a good plan, as you say, is the right way to go.

They're splits and not pace alright.

Dee, I'm going to say something that will go against everything you will read on plans and such but speed and workouts isn't what you need right now. You need to get on working up your fitness and endurance by running longer, not hard intervals. Intervals are fine if you are running a lot and have a high base line fitness level but to get that high baseline, you need endurance first. Getting your body used to running 5 or 6 miles at a time first just to have that longer distance strength.

I'd be inclined to drop those two interval sessions each week and put in a longer easier run in place first to get your heart , lungs and legs used to ticking over for a good amount of time. Distance running is a sport of endurance first and foremost so that's the first goal, speedwork just adds on that final layer of icing on the base of endurance.

dee75

El Caballo wrote: »

They're splits and not pace alright.

Dee, I'm going to say something that will go against everything you will read on plans and such but speed and workouts isn't what you need right now. You need to get on working up your fitness and endurance by running longer, not hard intervals. Intervals are fine if you are running a lot and have a high base line fitness level but to get that high baseline, you need endurance first. Getting your body used to running 5 or 6 miles at a time first just to have that longer distance strength.

I'd be inclined to drop those two interval sessions each week and put in a longer easier run in place first to get your heart , lungs and legs used to ticking over for a good amount of time. Distance running is a sport of endurance first and foremost so that's the first goal, speedwork just adds on that final layer of icing on the base of endurance.

Thanks El Caballo

You know I think you're right. I'm usually wrecked after 5k and my lungs are heaving!

So by slowly building up distance rather than speed my 5k will naturally get easier and consequently faster?

I'm sore after my circuits yesterday but not too bad so maybe I'll just hop on the treadmill tonight for a slow 40 mins run and build up to 50 mins and 60 mins over a few weeks .

Thanks everyone again for the constructive encouragement and advice. It's really helpful and motivating and very much appreciated!

Testosterscone

Late to the party on this one.

+1 on alot of what El C said endurance is where needs to be looked at rather than speed, the only caveat I would say is that at your current pace levels it might promote poor form if you keep the training relatively monopaced. I don't think intervals are necessarily a bad thing though if you focus on running with good form rather than trying to run fast.

This is a simple progression of session that could work really well if you wanted to break the monotony

Session 1 - 8x1 min @ 5k effort w/3 min jog recovery
Session 2 - 6x2 min slightly slower than 5k effort with 2 min jog recovery
Session 3 - 5x3 min @ steady pace with one min easy recovery

Rinse and repeat this cycle for a few weeks and you won't know yourself.

El Caballo

dee75 wrote: »

Thanks El Caballo

You know I think you're right. I'm usually wrecked after 5k and my lungs are heaving!

So by slowly building up distance rather than speed my 5k will naturally get easier and consequently faster?

I'm sore after my circuits yesterday but not too bad so maybe I'll just hop on the treadmill tonight for a slow 40 mins run and build up to 50 mins and 60 mins over a few weeks .

Thanks everyone again for the constructive encouragement and advice. It's really helpful and motivating and very much appreciated!

Sounds good. Yeah, getting the time in on your feet makes your heart and lungs more efficient basically. That feeling at the end of the 5k never goes away though:D but if you have good endurance, you'll run faster and stay the pace longer:)

nevan

I wanted to improve my 5k so I read some books and blog posts and started doing speed work. I did intervals once a week as well as the 5k. My times didn’t improve but I did get the beginnings of an injury. My legs weren’t tough enough for the bad form that came with running faster. I changed to doing a longer, slow run on Sunday (ramped up to 10 to 12k) and added a short midweek run. My times started to get better.

Try a super-slow 5k jog on Sunday, around 7.30 pace and a 3k on Wednesday at around 6.30 pace. Do it for 6 weeks and your time should fall. Let us know when you hit 30m again.

Baby75

How are you getting on Dee

dee75

Baby75 wrote: »

How are you getting on Dee

Well so far so good. Here's what I've done for the last couple of weeks: -

Week 1
Saturday- 5km parkrun. Took 32:41
Tuesday- circuits
Wednesday- easy 5km on treadmill. Took 35 minutes

Week 2
Saturday- 5km parkrun. Took 32:28
Tuesday- circuits
Thursday- 6km on treadmill. Took 40 minutes and had to slow to a walk several times due to stitches
Saturday - volunteered at parkrun
Sunday (today) - 6.66km on treadmill. Took 42 minutes. No stopping. Really enjoyed it!

More of the same planned for this week. Might try and get 7km done in the 42 minutes.

Kellygirl

Looking good Dee. Are you enjoying it? Can you get out instead of the treadmill at all? I need to be tied to a treadmill to keep me on one :-)

dee75

Kellygirl wrote: »

Looking good Dee. Are you enjoying it? Can you get out instead of the treadmill at all? I need to be tied to a treadmill to keep me on one :-)

Thanks kellygirl. Yes I am enjoying it which makes it so much easier!

The roads where I live are just a muck fest at the moment so the only outdoor run each week is the parkrun.

(Plus I love the treadmill cos we open up a big sliding door beside it so you're fully exposed to the outdoors while running indoors!!) 😀

ariana`

Well done dee. Running on a treadmill is great as a back up plan if you really really can't get out but it uses muscles differently, your running will come on more if you could run outdoors. Embrace the muck :P

Kellygirl

It’s too mucky and dangerous round here too as country roads. I have to drive to the nearest town as it just wouldn’t be safe. I do see people running round here but I wouldn’t be comfortable and I wouldn’t relax.

ariana`

Kellygirl wrote: »

It’s too mucky and dangerous round here too as country roads. I have to drive to the nearest town as it just wouldn’t be safe. I do see people running round here but I wouldn’t be comfortable and I wouldn’t relax.

Assuming OH if at home i run straight after work a couple of evenings a week which means I'm in town with reasonable footpaths & street lighting. I leave the local roads for when it's daylight or when i'm in a group whereby i feel a bit safer once we're all lit up and stick together. A bit like you said earlier i think i'd need to be tied to a treadmill to stay on it :pac:

smunchkins

Just to add my two cents worth, when I was working on my distance and speed running on a treadmill, I really found that practicing runs at 11kph and even up to 12 kph for 30 secs at a time really helped (and then I built it up to 2-3 mins). (Treadmills are not ideal, but the beauty of them is that you can tell exactly how fast you're going the whole time and work your timings to the second)
So, 10 mins at 10 kph, then 30 secs - 1 min up at 10.5kph, back down to recover, 5 mins at 8-10kph, then up to 10.5 or 11kph again.
I found that it helped me because I am lazy, I realised if I ran at 11k for 1 minute, it meant I could slip back down to 9k for another minute if I felt like it without losing my time (my normal pace is about 10.5kph).
But as everyone else is saying, slow and steady with all the experimenting! just try to push it a little bit from time to time!

dee75

Latest update...

Did usual circuits on Tuesday and around 5km on Thursday- half the run on treadmill at a decent pace and half outdoors up and down a short (relatively) clean section of road outside our house - which is also very hilly!

Did parkrun today and delighted to get new PB - 30.41 minutes.

That's a 27 second improvement on last PB !

Looks like the extra effort is paying off!!! Just have to keep pushing and hopefully I'll get down to 30 minutes within the next month!

messy tessy

Well done Dee, brilliant time for the park run!
I'm trying to get down to under a half an hour for 5k so following this with interest!

Kellygirl

dee75 wrote: »

Latest update...

Did usual circuits on Tuesday and around 5km on Thursday- half the run on treadmill at a decent pace and half outdoors up and down a short (relatively) clean section of road outside our house - which is also very hilly!

Did parkrun today and delighted to get new PB - 30.41 minutes.

That's a 27 second improvement on last PB !

Looks like the extra effort is paying off!!! Just have to keep pushing and hopefully I'll get down to 30 minutes within the next month!

That is brilliant Dee! Well done you. Very nearly there.

Itziger

Don't rush it, it'll come. Keep doing the simple things. Push out your longest run bit by bit and do one faster bit as well if you can. But consistency is 90% of your plan. No good getting 29.50 in Feb and picking up an injury when you can get it easily a month or two later. Just keep going!!

Baby75

great progress Dee

dee75

A little bit more progress to report this week.

Had to miss circuit training due to work so only got one run in on Wednesday. Ran 6.5 km in 42 minutes and for last half km ran at much faster pace (about 5.40 min/ km pace).

Thought with so little exercise this week is be lucky to get near last week's PB of 30.41 minutes.

So I was delighted to do yesterday's parkrun in 30.22 minutes- so a new PB with a 19 second improvement.

It's so motivating to see the improvement already. Chuffed to bits and now feel will get sub 30 minutes very soon.

mugsymugsy

I think you would get sub 30 now if you had a pacer just to bring you over the line.

Keep up the good work

Kellygirl

That is fantastic Dee. You are really getting close. Sometimes with a bit of a rest too you get a better result so maybe in a couple of weeks take a couple of days off and then go for it!

dee75

This week's log!

Wednesday 7th
4km on treadmill
Felt very tired and just gave up at 4km
Splits were 6.38, 6.16, 6.15, 6.16
Max BPM 154

Thursday 8th
Circuits class at lunchtime - 40 minutes HIIT
Max BPM 155

Saturday 10th
Volunteered at local parkrun
Dropped son to birthday party and did 7km in local forest park - never there before so didn't know route. Muddy and slippy surface.
Very slow and legs a bit sore still from circuits - took 48.26 mins. Felt breathing was good though.
Max BPM 169
Splits were 6.04, 6.44, 6.52, 6.56, 7.05, 7.15, 7.27

Happy though as that's the furthest I've ever run in my life!!

Baby75

dee75 wrote: »

This week's log!

Wednesday 7th
4km on treadmill
Felt very tired and just gave up at 4km
Splits were 6.38, 6.16, 6.15, 6.16
Max BPM 154

Thursday 8th
Circuits class at lunchtime - 40 minutes HIIT
Max BPM 155

Saturday 10th
Volunteered at local parkrun
Dropped son to birthday party and did 7km in local forest park - never there before so didn't know route. Muddy and slippy surface.
Very slow and legs a bit sore still from circuits - took 48.26 mins. Felt breathing was good though.
Max BPM 169
Splits were 6.04, 6.44, 6.52, 6.56, 7.05, 7.15, 7.27

Happy though as that's the furthest I've ever run in my life!!

Well done on the 7km and to your first venture trail running it does tend to take more out of you but makes you stronger

dee75

Baby75 wrote: »

Well done on the 7km and to your first venture trail running it does tend to take more out of you but makes you stronger

Trail running somehow sounds more exciting!!!

Kellygirl

Well done! Making great progress!

dee75

I did it!!!

Bloody delighted with myself!!

Parkrun today - did it in 29.16

Couldn't believe it!!

That's a 1 minute 6 second improvement on last parkrun two weeks ago.

Training works!

I'm gonna switch this thread to a proper training log tomorrow like all the proper runners!!!!

quickbeam

Well done Dee! That's some smashed record there!!